Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Beijing: Lama Temple

You remember when I went to Shanghai a few months ago? Well, I flew in and out of Beijing for that, and on the way home, stopped to see a friend in Beijing. When she was at work, I knocked this guy off my Beijing Bucket List.

The Lama Temple is a working Mongolian-Tibetan Buddhist temple located in the Yonghegong area in northeast Beijing {for the record, Yonghegong is Chinese for "Lama Temple"}. This temple is fairly old; construction on it began in the late 1600's. And, a rare thing in China, it survived the Cultural Revolution due to the intervention of a government official.

The day I was there it was chilly and crisp, and only a little bit hazy. There were some visitors, but not enough to make the experience a hassle. At the entrance to the main part of the temple grounds, visitors can receive a free bundle of incense.

In all, it was a fun little excursion on the way to meet my friend for coffee and a pulled pork sandwich. What excursions have you been on lately?